Trainees started

The 51 funded trainees were employed as full members of staff, giving them a similar level of responsibility to other paid staff. The trainees were learning by doing, reinforcing the new skills and experiences they were gaining on the job.

Eighteen month traineeships may have enabled more trainees to complete the level 3 Heritage Skills Passport.

Three trainees were taken on as volunteers in addition to the 51 funded trainees. They came second in the interview process but asked if they could come onto the scheme as volunteers.

The programme manager agreed and these trainees were taken under the umbrella of the Passport to your Future programme and treated like any other trainee. The properties paid for the volunteer trainees to attend group training and therefore these three volunteers enjoyed the same experiences as the other trainees. All the volunteers completed their year.